Seen through the glass, darkly

(Smart machines)

Perhaps much of the dark glass is benign, performing routine functions
like presence detection, responding to simple jestures, benign
infared imaging, and the like, without transmitting any photometric
information (images, or the like) elsewhere.
Today's generation of smart light switches, smart motion detectors,
etc., are often hidden away behind locked doors. It is only occasionally,
when doors are left ajar, that we get a chance to take
a look at
some of this intelligence.

Dark windows and the systems built around them ought to be
subject to inspection by those who are "seen through
the glass, darkly". Take a look at where automatic flush is used,
in high security establishments such as airports, where there is not
one square inch of the establishment where you can stand without being
"seen through the glass, darkly".
These dark panels, with tamper-proof screws, shroud
their contents in secrecy, leading to an unhealthy system of absolute
trust in those how have installed them.